Positive Voices: Save the Whales Edition

Above the Influence

Talk about starting the week off on a positive note! Texas teen Dannie McMillan completely flipped the script on her would-be bullies to not only defuse their power, but totally co-opt their attempt at name-calling and put it to much better use.

When Dannie learned about a twitter page that called her a “fat whale” she went through the normal range of emotions; embarrassment turned into anger which became fuel for motivation. Dannie exchanged Facebook messages with model Laura Lee, whose support helped her channel those emotions into triumph.

As Dannie told a local news outlet, “I jokingly told her: part of me wants to cry all day. And, the other part of me wants to get a t-shirt with a whale on it and wear it to school to show that they can’t get to me. And, she was like ‘oh, we should.’”